Tips to collect information on your website; free source for on-line contributions

Sorry for the lack of postings past few weeks, been very busy.
Here's the text of a memo, with a few edits, I made that small, local Republican Parties could esily implement.

Also, on the subject of a free source for on-line contributions, check out www.clickandpledge.com. You only pay a percentage of each contribution that is made to you via the web service. So there's no upfront costs or fees - the only fee is the percentage of each transacation you pay to Click and Pledge. I've incorporated it into a number of websites and have been quite happy.

Best of all, my counties are happy because there's no out-of-pocket expenses.

Now, on to the suggestion via memo I wrote for a campaign...

I. Research suggests that making it difficult or increasing the number of web pages from "the ask" to the page to actually make a contribution can cut response as high a 75%.

To correct this and, hopefully, boost response, I propose that in addition to a standard "Contribute" link I propose a "Flash" presentation on the upper right hand portion of the website similar to the RNC's (http://www.gop.com) and the Washington County REC's (http://www.washingtongop.com) that creates in the visitor a fear or anger (fear is a much better motivator; anger is obviously powerful, as well) that unless a contribution is made that all will be lost or an anti-American liberal agenda will be rammed down mainstream Americas' throats.

II. My second proposal is a "What Issues are Important to You" page. This page will help meet our goal of 1) voter ID for micro-targeting and 2) collecting grassroots information we can use for campaigns and, hopefully, e-mail action items. (see http://www.nassaugop.org for an example) In addition, again, mirroring multiple single-issue/special interest websites, we can make an option at the end of the petition to make a contribution.

This is standard practice in direct mail where a petition (admittedly not used or dispensed) is used to increase an emotional level or create an immediate desire in the reader to contribute to stop the items listed on the poll (they are designed to intentionally create anger) to boost response. Since research suggests that petitions or "polls" can be used to boost these responses and we could emulate this on our website.

Proposed "Important Issues" could be:

1. Illegal immigration
2. Gun control
3. Liberal judicial activism
4. Prayer in school
5. Gay marriage
6. Abortion

We can add any other issue we deem important or useful to voter id.

A form can be added to collect contact information we can append to the voter file.

III. On-Line Petitions

In addition to "important issues" we could add our own on-line petition to exclusively collect data. The results would not be shared and would be used exclusively for voter ID and donor prospecting.

With this I would also add an on-line contribution option AFTER the petition is completed and they're taken to a "thank you" page and sent a "thank you" e-mail.